-snip-
newsflash :
https://twitter.com/ShapeShift_ioYou heard right! #ShapeShift has partnered with @PurseIO to allow @Amazon purchases to be made with #BTC, #XMR,
#DASH & more purse.io
I am truly on the fence with services like shapeshift or purse. They only provide a way to extract value from an altcoin ecosystem, without directly improving adoption.
A currency needs to build an economy and that includes people being able to spend their coins, but that should be the result of organic growth, where new services adopt the currency, and also users that are not speculators find value in the added value benefits the currency brings so they are willing to exchange FIAT for coins, take advantage of those services and get what he needs at the merchants that are accepting the coins.
What do you guys think could this type of indirect ways to spend your coins be counterproductive for younger altcoin projects?
I agree. It's a great service in essence but it is also effectively selling out of the cryptocurrency system.
By this I mean the coins are sold for fiat. What cryptocurrency in general needs is for the loop to either be closed (earn/buy crypto - buy something that store buys something etc. all in cryptocurrency)
Or at least go a few hops before conversion.
The ideal way would be for salaries to be payed in crypto. But that's probably a ways off. In the interim what would really help I believe is if manufacturers/suppliers started using crypto. And there are clear benefits to them particularly if they are in a different country to the where the product is sold.
So Dell accepts Bitcoin - Great! Oh wait Dell is justing selling Bitcoin for dollars. Hmm. Dell's component manufacturers wanting their payments in Bitcoin would be monumental. Dell would have to BUY bitcoin.
Dell paying staff in Bitcoin would also be great but like I say I think that's a ways off.